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On a deep cellular level none of us like each other. Everyone else is foreign and the immune system says ATTACK!

The odd thing about pregnancy is that his genes somehow manage to instruct us to dial that down, and we cooperate with him until we don't, any more. Which is what triggers labor. Except if we decide to trigger labor and get the kid out, but the placenta fights back because it isn't done cooking yet...

Caryn, @carynjrogers, who is not a doctor and who talks about science stuff *way* too much
DS Oscar born by emergent C-section at 34 weeks for fetal indicators, due to severe PE
DD Bridget born by C-section after water broke at 39 weeks after a healthy pregnancy

So is this sort of like "the perfect storm" for preeclampsia? It seems very much to be a dynamic reaction between the two systems (maternal and paternal). Does that mean that, on some deep cellular level, my husband and I don't "like" each other?

Mommy to Molly, who was born alive on Oct. 29, 2011 at 23+3 weeks due to severe pre-eclampsia/HELLP syndrome and passed away 3 hours later. Loved and missed every minute of every day...."If love could have saved you, you would have lived forever."

"multifactorial polygenic inheritance" means you have to hit on a combination of genes in the mother and a combination of genes in the father. So say I had to have the genes for chronic hypertension plus an immune mediated condition, and DH had to have the genes for a slightly deranged implantation, and when you put all of those together, the phenotype expresses preeclampsia.

Caryn, @carynjrogers, who is not a doctor and who talks about science stuff *way* too much
DS Oscar born by emergent C-section at 34 weeks for fetal indicators, due to severe PE
DD Bridget born by C-section after water broke at 39 weeks after a healthy pregnancy

From an epidemiological point of view, many studies have shown that PE is a disease with a strong familiar predisposition, which also varies according to geographical, socioeconomic, and racial features, and this information can be used in the prediction process. Large amounts of research have shown a genetic association with a multifactorial polygenic inheritance in the development of this disease.

Yep, my sister and I both had it, and I've a strong family history of chronic hypertension. DH's brother fathered a child with severe IUGR, so his family makes weird placentas. The combination? Not so awesome.

Caryn, @carynjrogers, who is not a doctor and who talks about science stuff *way* too much
DS Oscar born by emergent C-section at 34 weeks for fetal indicators, due to severe PE
DD Bridget born by C-section after water broke at 39 weeks after a healthy pregnancy